SeaDawg

Omg, @ShallowGal. Those two cute travelers can drink a lot (and obviously, wear a lot) of water. Our dogs sure bring a lot of joy to the journey, don't they? Sherry

Nothing like a great cup of coffee!

Hi, and a special welcome to another LE 1! We've enjoyed 14 seasons of adventures with our sturdy 2008. Hope you enjoy yours as much as we've enjoyed ours! PS, love the name you've chosen. Camping definitely resets our priorities.

I'm possibly confused, but I thought rv co sensors were set to be more sensitive than home units, with lower levels and shorter time periods, because of the smaller space, and that's why we get more frequent alarms from anything from dog farts to generators in the next camping space? I think the data readout is great, as a secondary unit, or possibly tertiary in your case, but if it doesn't wake me up in time...

@Liana i found a series of videos on YouTube from Missouri wind and solar. Unlike Northern Arizona wind and solar, I've not purchased anything from them. I slogged through parts of this video below. He's not an engaging speaker, but I think he might be a good starting point for some research.

I think it's really great that the neighbor rv park has a wind turbine. What could be a better local source of info! I'm becoming more intrigued with your project every day. Good luck!

The zamp port, as installed, connects directly to the batteries, via a fused line. Therefore, any solar panel or wind turbine needs its own controller. The zamp controller (or whatever brand you have) sees the power going to the battery from another source, and adds whatever you need, or nothing, from your fixed solar panels to charge. It's perfectly safe, as long as you have a proper controller on the wind turbine (or for most of us, portable solar) line, before the port.

This topic has been discussed a few times before. Here's a link to another thread with some good ideas:

Funny. That's exactly what I use... two tubs, actually, though I think the brand is Sterilite, from Walmart or Target. A flat dish rack from IKEA sits on top, and hides the wiped but unwashed dishes.

I wouldn't. Propane tanks, even "empty" ones, should only be carried in a properly vented area. Propane is heavier than air, and if leaked, it collects in the lowest area. We actually rarely carry an extra tank. Propane lasts a long time for us, even the 20 lb tanks, unless it's really cold, and we have to run the furnace a lot. The stove and refrigerator use minimal amounts.

If you'll be mostly in California, I'd omit the 30 lb tanks, unless you are truly "buff." My daughter can lift them out, and back, I'm sure. She's tough. Not me, anymore. And, a lot of places won't fill portable tanks "in place." I can lift 20 lb tanks, empty or full, over the ledge, and I'm short. They're also the common exchange size. I wouldn't want to trade a brand new tank at blue rhino. I'd carry an extra old one, from your grill, or a garage sale, in a milk crate to keep it upright, in the truck bed. Blue rhino takes anything.

Quite true, and could be said of some of our mods, too. Pretty slick though, for those of us (like me) who don't like to drink tank water,even filtered. @John E DaviesI like your suggestion on the alternative switch, though. I collect cold water in a kettle, and use it for dishwashing, but it's a pain. Love your mod, @Minnesota Oli. Please let us know how it works for you through the next year. My guess, you'll be loving it.

WOW! That beautiful Futura pressure cooker is practically a work of art! I see that it will also works on induction, as well as gas. Several people here have portable induction burners for use at powered campsites. My mother in law was a pressure cooker master. I wish she had given me lessons. I've never mastered it. Maybe someday you'll teach me? 🙃 We carried only one small pot, and one small fry pan, for over a decade. (Only two burners, right?) A few years ago, I found a very small wok skillet made by nordicware that has become my favorite indoor cooking utensil. Great for heating soups, making jambalaya or stir fries, thai, etc. I carry melmac plates and bowls, as we do in the boat. Decent quality, so not too many scratches after 14 seasons. We do sometimes use paper plates and bowls, or many times, just a napkin for sandwiches at lunch. If you already own corelle, take it. It's pretty sturdy stuff. Just don't store it with metal. You may want to slide a cheap, thin paper plate, or a bit of shelfliner, between them, for travel. I have 4 plastic paper plate holders, so we can use the thin coated paper plates from Aldi, that burn quickly and completely on the fire. I have a lot of forks and spoons , probably 10, each, so I don't have to do dishes every meal. Wipe them off with the napkin, and keep for a day or two til I do dishes, with a tea ketlle of hot water . Much of our cooking is on the fire, or on the grill . My advice is don't overload. After a few trips, you'll know what you need. Every season, I carry less.

Another nugget of good info , Mattnan. Since there are two of us, I can look ahead for good gas stops, as we travel, both for price and maneuverability. For my solo traveler friends, this often means planning the route and setting way points in the route planner, for gas and rest stops. I use GasBuddy, Google, and waze. We often like the stations like membership Costco, Sams, and many of the non-membership Murphy's at walmarts. Usually convenient to the interstate, and one way lanes. The outside lanes are easiest to get in and out of. The downside of costco and sams is no bathrooms or shopping, unless you park and go into the warehouse. We've found that some of the Loves and flying js (especially near major interstate junctions) can be very, very tight, and chaotic with people pulling in and out from both directions. Some are great. But, sometimes, it's even worth paying a few cents a gallon more, to avoid the high traffic stations and lines. While you're waiting for your trailer, start paying attention when you're gassing up. You will need much more room, with a trailer behind, to maneuver tight lanes . You can do this. Everyone is new, at some point. Then, later, you can help others with sharing your experiences.

That is such great advice. Sometimes, it can help to just take another loop around the campground, and take a break.

@ScubaRx, did you fabricate the mounts yourself? Or, could you tell us where you found them?

@ScubaRx, do you "just" thread the pole up, and then attach to the lower mount? Do you have to break out the ladder? Telescoping pole? It's pretty cool, and very tall!

On our boat, the one dry bath, separate shower often becomes a sail locker, or storage locker. The original bath becomes a wet bath. Separate shower in rental rvs often gets the same destination. Laundry bags, boots, etc, til we need to use it, then its a mess putting stuff elsewhere. I'm of course really used to wet baths, so take it for what it's worth. I have zero issues with a multipurpose room. I actually prefer it.

@BackofBeyond, hoping the answer is you come back to the fold, one day.

Yes, it is. So sorry for the folks in your photo. What an awful experience.

I've read that you can't collect rainwater in Colorado, without a special specific permit, but is micro hydro prohibited, as well? There is no collection going on. A small turbine in a stream, if you have one. They might just roost and poop on it, instead. Yikes! I would "guess" a three acre buffer might be sufficient. Where we get annoyed/frustrated is when a wind generator is anchored near us, or worse yet, a few years ago, docked two boats behind. Say, 200 feet or so. An acre is roughly (i think) 200 x 200 ft. That was an older boat, with an older wind gen, and the water carries every sound. EVERY sound. My best guess is 70db when we had wind.. which was most of the time. Plus squeaky bearings,which were worse. I was really glad when they left. We don't actually see too many wind generators on boats, anymore. Most have gone over to silent solar. Boats amplify the sounds like a drum. In your scenario, I'd be more concerned about your own sleep. It's hard to send dc power from a distance, without big/thick wire, and not have significant resistive loss. Placing the controller near the batteries helps, as opposed to some of the newer systems that have a controller at or in the wind generator. I'll be very interested in what you come up with. More "power" to you! Please keep us posted on what you decide to do.

No one is offended, I'm sure. We love talking about camping here. That's why we have trailers . And, we sometimes have different views, on various subjects. We keep it clean, and courteous.

Of course you can use the port, for a small 12v wind generator, probably 200 to 400 watts. The fuse on the zamp port, I think, is 10 amps. Just like solar, you'll need a controller, specifically one that's made for wind turbines. We looked into a helical wind turbine when we built our home, to supplement the solar. To get it high enough in the air to do anything more than "make a statement " (and actually generate a meaningful amount of power) would not have been possible with our municipal codes. But, that research was done over 10 years ago, and advances have been made in turbine design. We just decided to up the solar, and eventually add battery backup. It's worked great for us With our sailboat, we've anchored and docked next to boats with wind generators, and absolutely hated the noise. Newer systems may be more quiet. Idk. If you get one, make sure you can brake it in high winds, without lowering the mast. Make sure it's worth it, actually, in $$ . I'd suggest you speak to someone at Arizona wind and sun, to start with. They sell quality usa made gear . Whatever you decide, check wind maps, and make sure your wind gen kicks in at levels of at least average wind. Many people think they have a lot of wind, but many wind gens don't kick in before 10 to 14 mph winds. And if they do, output is measly. As far as portable, you own the property. Consider making it a permanent install, in high clean air, imo. As much as I love clean energy, I've not (yet) found anything I'd take traveling, and risk annoying my neighbors. We have 600 watts of solar on our boat. It's silent, always. Fixed solar on the trailer is 400 watts , plus 200 watts portable. Helical and vertical axxis are more quiet, but in our old research , less efficient. I can run a 60 db gen for an hour or two. 65 db of a turbine, whenever the wind kicks up, would not make me happy. I'm no longer "young," but my hearing is still good. If you do decide to be the pioneer, and find a good system, I will truly look forward to your posts . We've also looked at micro hydro generation, as we have several streams on our camping property. Another (mostly silent) thought. Then again, you could build your own wind generator, and try it out. Here's one: https://offgridworld.com/simple-diy-200-watt-wind-turbine-built-from-household-materials/ I'm a huge fan of clean energy. Wind included.

Pretty simply, actually. We treat the trailer, as likely you do, as a hard sided tent. We minimize our impact. We live on solar. We pretty much live the same, at home. Solar powered home. Solar powered boat. At home, we collect rainwater, and filter it for use everywhere. As I think you do, we believe in treading as lightly as possible on our planet. We try to use the fewest resources possible. Mess up as little as possible. Leave a very small footprint, if we can . I don't love the desert, like you apparently do. More power to you. Room for everyone. I love trees,mountains and water. Green and blue are my favorite colors. 😁 well, I like all the colors of the ocean...and the mountains. Last year, we actually counted, and 152 days, camping in our 2008 Oliver. It takes some thinking and planning, as you know. Some years more, some less, probably. Is what it is. Happy camping.